


Breath of Life

by Niori



Series: Ceremonials [3]
Category: Captain America (Movies), Iron Man (Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Angst, Awesome Pepper Potts, Community: norsekink, F/M, Fenrir!Bucky, Gen, Hel!Pepper, Racism
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-02
Updated: 2015-12-02
Packaged: 2018-05-04 13:24:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,439
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5335682
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Niori/pseuds/Niori
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Fenrir watched with the rest of the world as Pepper Potts told them all that she was Hela Lokidottir.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Breath of Life

Fenrir watched with the rest of the world as Pepper Potts told them all that she was Hela Lokidottir. It was an interview with the newest Barbara Walters type show, one that told the celebrity heart wrenching stories. That was the platform that Hela used to tell their story. He was sitting at a bar in the middle of nowhere, USA, drinking and keeping his expression carefully blank. At first, no one was really paying attention, but as the interview went on, more people began to watch. By the time the clip was shown - a shaky camera phone video, showing Pepper fall to the ground, screaming and withering in pain as her skin melted away, revealing the form underneath- the entire bar was enraptured. 

Of course he had known that Hela was Pepper Potts. It was hard not to, when she was being named Person of the Year by Time Magazine. Then again, she and Jorgamund (wherever he was) had to know who he was, or at least who he had been. He had gone and gotten himself famous for the double whammy of being Captain America's best friend and being the only Howling Commando to die in combat. Being famous wasn't the best thing to be, not when you aged at almost a snail's pace and your appearance stayed the same for a long time, but damn if he hadn't enjoyed it while it last. Fenrir hadn't gone by Bucky for a long time, though it was still the mortal name he referred to himself as, even if it was only in his head. It was the life he loved and missed the most, and would never shake it. He blamed Steve for that. He would have had to fake his death eventually and start over somewhere new, but he wished he could have done it in a less painful way, and one that actually gave some closure to the ones he left behind. 

Bucky watched as his sister spoke, and was impressed. Hela had always known how to play a crowd, and years of handling the sometimes disaster that was Tony Stark had only made her better. Hela had always been the clever one. Pepper's eyes shone with tears, but she didn't let them fall. A woman crying would send the wrong message to the general public. It would cast her as a damsel who needed to be saved. The teary eyes and stiff posture, however, showcased her power and strength, even while she cast herself as the innocent victim in the tragedy that was their lives. Stark helped with that. For once he held his tongue and let someone else tell their own story. He sat at Pepper's side, holding her hand, but letting her be front and centre. There were times he showed his anger, but he never let it overshadow Pepper's pain.

When her story came to the day their happy life ended in screams and bloody snow, Bucky ordered another drink and downed it. He had been so young when the Asgardians had shown up in Utgard. So young he couldn't even remember his mother's face for what it really was. Memories of his childhood were few and far between, though he did remember being happy. He remembered laughing and playing with his siblings, watching his parents do magic, but they were almost half formed after all this time. They were overshadowed by the memory of screaming in Hela's arms while Jor tried to stop them from seeing their mother being beaten to death. He remembered his mother's screams more than he did her smile, and that enraged him. 

His grip tightened around his empty glass, and it shattered under his grip. He hissed as some of the shards went into his palm. The bartender started to say something, the anger on his face implying it would be insulting, but Bucky glared. The other man seemed startled, but still inclined to berate him. Bucky bared his teeth, wolf-like for all he was in human shape. The bartender faltered under the look, and he didn't dare say anything. Instead, the man threw down a dish towel and began to wipe up broken glass. Bucky pulled the pieces out of his hand and added them to the pile on the bar.

It was unkind perhaps, but listening to his sister made him want to lash out. Once upon a time, before war had broken out and their lives changed, Steve had asked him how he could always be so happy-go-lucky. Bucky had laughed and given a cheeky reply, one that made Steve laugh along with him. It wasn't fake, his usual attitude. He was generally a fun, happy person who could make light of anything. That just wasn't all of him, and he had always kept the other parts of him out of sight from the mortals he surrounded himself with. Especially Steve. He was angry, so angry, and when his temper came out, it was something awful to see. Bucky could emphasise with the Hulk. Sitting and listening to his mother's death all over again, made him want to hurt something, to destroy like he hadn't in a long time. He could kill half the people in the bar without breaking a sweat, and the rage running through him made him tempted to do it. He wasn't a wolf anymore, but that didn't mean he still couldn't rip people apart if he wanted to. 

The last ones to find that out were the Hydra scientists who had fished him out of that icy canyon seventy years ago. They hadn't bothered to drug him that time, figuring he was too out of it because of pain, if the fact that a quarter of his bones were broken wasn't enough. It wasn't, because he'd dealt with running on broken bones before. Getting out of Gleipnir had required two broken legs, three cracked ribs, and a broken jaw, and that was even with his father's magic helping. They hadn't had time to stop and fix him before they had to run and disappear. So the assumption that a broken body would stop him was Hydra's mistake. Rage had always motivated him, ever since he watched his family torn apart, and it overrode pain every time. They hadn't had too long to regret it, not when he had no desire to drag their deaths out. 

Hela had the magic, Jorgamund had the shapeshifting, and Fenrir? He had Loki's viciousness, the kind that lurked just under the surface and was bloody when it came out. That's why Tyr was short one hand. 

It had taken him nearly two years to fully heal from the fall and what Hydra had managed to do to him before he woke up. By the time he managed to get out of the hidden Hydra base, the world had changed. The war was over, and they had won. His best friend was dead. He wept when he heard about Steve, because it wasn't fair. Bucky should have stopped believing the world could be fair long before that, but he still cursed that it had to be the best guy he ever met that made the sacrifice. He wasn't surprised, because he had always known that Steve would be the one to lay down his life to do the right thing, but he wished more than anything that he had gotten to settle down with Peggy and two point five kids in a cute house with a white picket fence. He deserved that. Steve was the one person he'd ever considered telling the truth to. He almost had a million times, especially while the war drug on and they saw such terrible things happening around them. Steve could probably believe it after seeing the magic that Hydra was using and calling science, or at least wouldn't automatically decide he was crazy when Bucky told him he was actually a wolf the size of a tank. He hadn't, in the end, but it wasn't because of a lack of trust. It was because he knew damn well that Steve would try to find a way to go after justice for what Asgard did to him. It was brave and the most honourable thing he could ever imagine, far more honourable than Fenrir ever had a chance of being, but it was either impossible, or lethal if they actually succeeded in getting Asgard's attention. Then Bucky died and it didn't matter anymore. 

When he heard that Steve had been found -frozen in ice but somehow still alive and young-, he had almost gone to him. He had booked a bus ticket and everything, because Steve was alive and he was sick of secrets. Then he learned just what had happened, that his father came down with an alien army and his uncle followed to fight him, and knew he couldn't. Hela could keep her cover in the face of anything, but Bucky knew he couldn't, especially when word got out just what had led Loki to deciding to invade Midgard in the first place (damage control from Shield, he figured, once the media learned that Loki was Thor's brother and they wanted to put as much distance between the two of them as they could). After hearing that, after learning just how badly Asgard had destroyed his father, Bucky knew he'd never be able to stand in front of an Asgardian again without trying to kill them on sight.

Bucky remembered the slurs against his mother, ones that they didn't even bother to whisper. They openly mocked his mother, calling her a monster while they toasted her death as a job well done. He remembered how his father's rage at the words slowly turned to flinches as the centuries passed. Somewhere along the line Loki must have started to believe some of it, if trying to destroy Jotunheim was his reaction to finding out he was a Frost Giant. He wouldn't have, not when his mother had been alive. He would have been angry that he had been lied to, but Loki wouldn't have lost his mind. If Bucky had to place a bet, it'd be Odin continuing to show his disappointment in the whole 'affair' (his parents were married damnit, but Asgard would never acknowledge it) that wore Loki down. Loki had always been desperate to please Odin, and if the newscasts he featured in were any indication, it had broken him. 

On screen, Pepper had gotten to the part where they were all taken away. Bucky flinched when she described his being chained, and rubbed his jaw with his uninjured hand. Even in this shape, he still had a scar from where the sword had pierced him. She moved on to Jorgamund being cast into the sea and her being dragged to Helheim without mentioning why it had happened in the first place, and Bucky was thankful. It was his fault, even if none of them would ever blame him. He was young and stupid, and so angry the longer he was trapped in Asgard. It had been better when Sigyn was there, but once she died and all the whispers came back, Fenrir had decided to make them scared. He wanted them to know he was a threat, and maybe they'd just leave his family alone. His family told him not to react to every insult, saw the danger in it, but he hadn't listened. Eventually, when he grew so big that he towered over even the largest warhorse, they decided he was far too dangerous to be free. He proved his point far too well, and they decided to take down Hela and Jor while they were at it. 

Odin had planned it well, and the execution had been flawless. They sent Loki away on a long diplomatic visit to Alfheim, and kept the news of what happened confined in Asgard. Loki didn't even learn about what happened until he returned, and Odin hit him with a binding spell before he could even process it. The spell stopped him from being able to even look for a way to get around Odin's punishment, had even stopped him from being able to visit them. Loki had begged and pleaded, but it was no use. They were stuck until their father found a way around the spell, and it had taken Loki a long time to do that. A century in chains was a long, long time. 

On the TV, Pepper finally got to the end of her story. She finally told how she had been hit by a spell and had her magic cut off. They showed the video again, and then the reporter went back to asking her questions. The only time Pepper faltered was when the interviewer asked to see her without her glamour. She cast her eyes down to the floor and swallowed thickly. Stark looked on in concern and squeezed her hand. It took her a long moment before she could speak, and her voice wavered.

"I...my whole life, I've hated mirrors. No matter how much my parents told me there was nothing wrong, all I saw in my reflection was a corpse. Then in Asgard..." her voice drifted off, and she didn't have to say the rest to be understood, "I know I'm not a monster, but I still can't look in a mirror in that form without seeing myself as one," she paused to gather herself, "besides, it's not my magic that made the glamour, but my father's. I can't just drop it at will." 

The interviewer was a sharp one, because she caught right onto that last bit and latched onto it, "You've seen your father then?"

"Yes," Pepper didn't hesitate or look guilty, "a few days after it happened. He had magic back and came to see if I wanted my glamour back," she gestured to her suit, "obviously I said yes."

Bucky smiled a little, anger tempering down a little in the wake of Pepper's announcement. No matter how many times he tried to take over the world, Bucky never doubted that their father loved them. The confirmation was a plus though, and so was knowing Loki was still willing to risk himself to protect them. Bucky really wished he didn't have to anymore, but as long as Asgard existed, it would in some way be necessary. 

"And Tony," the reporter finally turned her attention to the billionaire, addressing him directly for the first time, "how do you feel about that? Did you know?" 

"I was there," he replied, completely unapologetic, "he showed up to help Pepper. I wasn't going to stop him, not when he was still blue and used whatever," the was distaste there, and Stark had to spit the next word out, "magic on Pepper before himself. I told him it's his one freebie, that the next time I see him, I'd do my damndest to throw his ass in jail. Loki got the message."

Bucky was impressed, and for the first time thought Stark might be good enough for his sister. He had been unimpressed when the news about their relationship broke, and had almost called Hela to ask if she was insane. For all intents and purposes, Tony was a train wreck and appeared to be almost as bad as his late father. Something had always rubbed Bucky the wrong way when it came to the elder Stark. It might have been his brand of arrogance, and the way it reminded him of the worst braggarts in Asgard, for all Stark was arrogant about much different things. The fact that his son was apparently much better and quite obviously in love with Hela, made Bucky feel better about the whole thing. Besides, there had to be a reason that Loki kept Stark alive after finding out. Saying Loki was overprotective was an understatement. 

Attention was back on Pepper, "And what are your thoughts on that?" 

"I hate it," she answered freely, "I hate all of it, but Tony's right. My father has done terrible things, and he needs to be held accountable. I won't stand in the way of that...but there's no way I'm ever letting Asgard get their hands on him. There's being held accountable, and then there's being sent out to be tortured."

The interviewer nodded, and Bucky saw they had her. The sympathy was real, and she was on Pepper's side. A glance around the bar showed a number of heads absently nodding in agreement. Bucky knew this had to have been Hela's plan, and it was working perfectly. She needed public opinion on her side, and that's exactly what was happening.

"Is this the official stance of the Avengers?" 

Tony snorted, "No, just me at the moment. I'm not saying they're different, just that I'm standing with Pepper no matter what they decide. Though, spoiler alert, there's going to be a press conference after this is over. I'm not supposed to mention it, but it's going to feature one Captain America reminding everyone that Pepper is amazing and this is the United States of America, who is supposed to protect the rights and freedoms of all its citizens."

"Steve Rogers is an amazing friend," Pepper finished with a genuine smile, "we're lucky to have him on our side."

The glitter in her eyes when she said 'we're' told Bucky that she wasn't talking about Stark. That was a call out to him, because of course she knew he'd see this eventually. A reminder that Steve was his friend (like he'd ever forget that), that he would be on his side, too. A subtle request to come back to them both. It was well played, because the idea had been whirling around the back of his mind since Pepper first appeared on the TV and said her name was Hela Lokidottir. There was still one unanswered question, and that kept him from moving.

"Thor?"

Pepper's face went blank and Tony didn't bother to hide his disgust, "Given he's the one who murdered his brother's wife and imprisoned his niece and nephews, he doesn't get a vote. The bastard doesn't deserve it." 

Pepper's answer was more diplomatic, "Uncle Thor went back to Asgard, presumably to tell my grandfather," good move, subtly reinforcing the fact it was family who continued to threaten her, "he's been asked to leave Earth until he's willing to swear he'd leave me alone. He wouldn't."

"Do you think he'd hurt you?" The reporter looked alarmed at the prospect.

"I'd like to see him try. I'm not a little girl anymore, and I'm not going to fight alone," this time Pepper squeezed Stark's hand, "that might not stop him from trying, however."

So Thor was gone for the foreseeable future. He'd be back, with Odin at least but possibly an army. If there was ever a time to make himself known, it would be now, in the calm before the storm. It'd be better for them to close ranks now, while they had time to make battle plans. Hela was going to need all the backup she could get, and he was good in a fight and loved her more than anything.

"What about your brothers? You said they're here as well. Is there anything you'd like to say to them?"

Pepper looked right at the camera, eyes imploring and earnest, "We've been hiding long enough...our family's been torn apart long enough. I've had enough of this. We can face them together, and this time we won't be victims."

"And what would you say to Asgard?" 

The honest and imploring look disappeared, replaced with a vicious, reckless, almost madness. It was their father's look, and Bucky grinned when he saw it. He watched as ice danced around her fingers, a show of power and defiance, "Come and get me." 

Bucky laughed, proud of his sister and her dare, something so unlike what he remembered. Maybe Stark was a good influence after all.

The interview ended with a few closing remarks, and the bar around him exploded into conversation. Bucky ignored it all, because it wasn't important. Hela had issued a call to arms, and who was he to resist it? He wanted his sister back. He wanted his best friend back. He wanted his father back, even if it was only through prison visitation. It was time for him to go home, a place that had the people he loved.

Without a word, Bucky threw money down on the table and got to his feet. He had a plane ticket to book.

**Author's Note:**

> So fun fact- I have no idea who Jorgamund's disguise is, so I am soliciting ideas. Help please.


End file.
